1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to pumps and, more particularly, to manually operated pumps designed to extract milk from the breast of a mother.
2. Description of the Background Art
It has long been known that breast feeding is the most desirable form of nourishment for infants. It is also well known that prepared formulas, while acceptable, are inadequate substitutes for a mother's natural milk.
In recent years there has been a trend for mothers to feed their infants other than from the breast and other than nature's own unadulterated milk. Breast feeding may in some instances be difficult or inconvenient thereby rendering the feeding of prepared formula easier. In some instances, however, a mother will extract milk from her own breast and store it for feeding to the infant at a different time and place. Such a situation may occur when a mother is separated from her child for one reason or another as, for example, when the mother is ill, at work or in a public place whereat the exposing of a breast for feeding purposes would be considered inappropriate. With these considerations in mind, it is apparent that a need exists for a breast pump by which the mother may conveniently extract her own milk at a time and place of her own choice for feeding to her infant at a time and place of her infant's choice.
A wide variety of devices have been developed for use in extracting milk from the mother's breast. One type of device is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,977,405 to Yanase and in U.S. Pat. No. 4,573,969 to Schlensog. According to those disclosures, the flared end or horn of a first tube is placed in contact with the mother's breast to be pumped. A second or external tube is positioned over the end of the first tube on the side remote from the flared end. A reciprocating or pumping action by the mother of the second tube with respect to the first will apply suction for the withdrawing of the milk. The milk is then received at the bottom of the second tube. A device of this type requires the pouring of the collected milk into a container such as a baby bottle for subsequent feeding to the infant. Designs of this type are quite simple but, unfortunately, result in the seals for the mating parts being contacted by the milk which wear and require replacement. Such designs also complicate the sterilizing of the apparatus between uses.
Further types of devices for milking mothers' breasts are described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,263,912 to Adams and U.S. Pat. No. 4,583,970 to Kirchner. According to those disclosures, a baby bottle is coupled directly with the horn contacting the mother's breast. Vacuum-creating mechanisms of the squeeze-ball type or the pivoting-handle type are coupled with the bottle and horn. A plurality of valves, at least two, are required to effect the suction needed for milk extraction. The plurality of parts required, including the multiplicity of valves, increases the cost of such devices. In addition, the plurality of valves increases the number of moving parts which might malfunction and create problems of operability. Further, although a feeding bottle is coupled directly to the apparatus in order to preclude the step of transferring the milk from the pump to the bottle, the space within the bottle is directly coupled with, and part of, the vacuum space thereby increasing the volume wherein the suction must be produced. Such an arrangement decreases the efficiency of the pumping action thereby requiring excess work by the mother during the extracting of her milk.
An additional type of apparatus for milk extraction is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,311,141 to Diamond. According to that disclosure, a horn positionable in contact with the breast to be milked, is coupled to the bottle through an arrangement of a hand pump, flexible tube and plurality of valves. The valve at the opening of the bottle removes the fixed volume of the bottle from the variable volume of the chamber wherein vacuum is created. As such its efficiency is improved. The apparatus, however, still has an excessive number of parts and a plurality of valves which inherently increases the cost, complexity and possibility of an operational malfunction. Further, the use of the flexible tubing makes the task of sterilizing the apparatus between uses all the more difficult.
As illustrated by the great number of prior background disclosures and commercial devices, efforts are continuously being made in an attempt to more efficiently extract milk from the breasts of mothers. None of these prior efforts, however, suggests the present inventive combination of component elements arranged and configured for extracting milk more conveniently and efficiently and for rendering such device more economical and convenient to manufacture and clean. Prior devices do not provide the benefits of the present invention which achieves its intended purposes, objectives and advantages over the devices of the background disclosures through a new, useful and unobvious combination of component elements, through a decrease in the number of functioning parts, at a reduction in cost to manufacture and maintain and through the utilization of only readily available materials and conventional components.
It is, therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide pumping apparatus comprising a central manifold with a cavity having a plurality of openings; a horn positioned in association with one of the openings for coupling a mother's breast with the cavity; a pump positioned in association with a second of the openings to create a vacuum within the cavity; support means positioned in association with a third of the openings for retaining a baby bottle in position to receive pumped milk; and valve means located within the third opening whereby when the pump is activated and a vacuum is created in the cavity, the valve means will seal the third opening from the vacuum in the cavity.
It is a further object of the present invention to reduce the number of parts in devices fro extracting milk from mothers' breasts for simplicity of assembly, disassembly and cleaning.
It is yet a further object of the invention to render hand pumps for extraction of mother's milk more convenient by the adjustablity of the position of the components thereof so that the angle between that portion contacting the mother's breast and the rest of the device may be varied to the particular needs of any particular mother.
Lastly, it is an object of the invention to increase the efficiency of pumps by separating the space of the milk-receiving bottle from the space where the vacuum is created.
The foregoing has outlined some of the more pertinent objects of the invention. These objects should be construed to be merely illustrative of some of the more prominent features and applications, of the intended invention. Many other beneficial results may be attained by applying the disclosed invention in a different manner or by modifying the invention within the scope of the disclosure. Accordingly, other objects and advantages as well as a fuller understanding of the invention may be had by referring to the summary and detailed description of the preferred embodiment of the invention in addition to the scope of the invention as defined by the claims taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.